We’ve come a long way since MacPaint and ClarisWorks were included with every Mac, and Apple has no equivalent to the Paint program which comes with Windows. So how do you paint on a Mac? It depends on what exactly you’re looking to do, so this article will explain how from the simplest option to the most complex.
A Paint-esque app does exist on your Mac — and here’s how to find it By Justin Pot October 1, 2020 Since the dawn of time (aka 1985), Windows has always shipped with a basic image-editing. Mac users interested in Paint app for mac lion generally download: PaintMee 1.3 PaintMee is a simple image editor for Mac that helps you transform your pictures into impressive artworks. Download Paint Free For Mac. Free and safe download. Download the latest version of the top software, games, programs and apps in 2020.
1. Markup images using your Mac’s native Preview application
MacOS has always come with a built-in image and PDF viewer called Preview. And more recent versions of Preview actually allow you to make basic changes to images in addition to viewing them, such as rotating, adding text and arrows, and even adding signatures. To access these tools simply open an image in Preview and select the below button in the menubar:
This button will bring up the markup toolbar, allowing you to edit the picture or PDF. For a detailed explanation on how to use these tools check out this article.
2. Download the free and simple Paintbrush application
If you want a Paint program that is basically the same as the one which comes with Windows, look no further than Paintbrush. This application predates the Mac App Store and is not listed there, although the developers updated it in 2017 so it’s not been abandoned for years. Paintbrush can be downloaded from Sourceforge here.
3. Download Sketchbook or another free sketch/paint app from the Mac App Store
If you want a more sophisticated app for sketching/drawing/painting specifically, the Mac App Store offers numerous free apps for this (as well as paid ones). One of the best free drawing apps on the Mac App Store is Sketchbook, pictured below:
4. Purchase Pixelmator from the Mac App Store
To get something with more Photoshop-like capabilities Pixelmator is a great application, which I personally prefer to Photoshop. Pixelmator is available on the Mac App Store and although it is a paid app, the twenty-something dollars it costs is well worth it to have a great all-round drawing and editing app on your Mac forever. Bear in mind that Adobe now sells its products as monthly subscriptions, so unless you need the really pro features you’d be best to pick up Pixelmator.
5. Purchase a Photoshop subscription from Adobe
Microsoft Paint App For Mac
And of course, the industry standard for image editing is available for MacOS. Although it’s far from what you’d want if you just want to paint on your Mac, Photoshop can be purchased as a subscription from Adobe’s website here.
Tux Paint is completely free software, released as “Open Source” software, under the provisions of the GNU General Public License (GPL). This means you may download it and install it on as many machines as you wish, copy it for friends and family, and give it to your local schools. In fact, we encourage this!
Tux Paint runs on most systems, but check the Requirements if you're unsure whether your system can support it.
Current Version (0.9.24):
Microsoft Windows
- Windows 10, 8, 7, Vista, 2000, & XP
- Users of Microsoft Windows 10, Windows 8, Windows 7, Windows Vista, Windows XP, Windows 2000 can download and run this simple installer application to get the full version of Tux Paint.
(A stand-alone ZIP-file version, also known as a 'Portable' version, is available, as well.)
Apple macOS
- macOS
- Apple Macintosh owners running macOS can download Tux Paint here.
Linux
- RPM Linux Packages
- Users of RedHat and Fedora Linux distributions can download Tux Paint for Intel x86 architecture (i386) or source-code in RPM format.
- Ubuntu Linux Packages
- Ubuntu users can download pre-compiled Tux Paint packages for their release and architecture from Launchpad.
- Debian GNU/Linux Packages
- Debian users can simply download pre-compiled Tux Paint packages for their release and architecture from their preferred Debian archive mirror. Backports of recent versions of Tux Paint for older Debian releases are also provided through backports.org.
- Slackware Linux Packages
- Slackware users can download Tux Paint packages via SlackBuild.org.
- Flatpak Packages for Linux
- Users of a variety of Linux distributions can install Tux Paint via Flatpak, a framework for distributing desktop applications.
Linux Distribution Packages
Distribution-agnostic Packages
Android
- Android
- Android phone and tablet users can download 'Tux Paint', or install it from the F-Droid software repository.
Apple iOS
- iOS 6.0 (iPhone, iPod Touch, iPad)
- iPad users with iOS 6.0 or later can download a free port called 'Tux Paint Free' from iTunes.
Haiku
- Haiku
- Haiku users can download Tux Paint Haiku Depot.
Older Versions:
Microsoft Windows
- Windows 95, 98, ME
- Users of Microsoft Windows 95, Windows 98 and Windows ME, can download and run this simple installer application to get a Tux Paint.
(A ZIP-file version, also known as a 'Portable' version, is available, as well.)
Linux
- OLPC XO-1 Activity
- Owners of the One Laptop per Child 'XO-1' can download a build of Tux Paint that runs on their device.
Blackberry Playbook
- Playbook
- Blackberry Playbook tablet users can download 'Tux Paint' from Blackberry World.
BSD
- FreeBSD Packages
- FreeBSD users can learn about the FreeBSD port of Tux Paint.
- pkgsrc Packages
- Users of Unix-like operating systems that use the 'pkgsrc' package management system (e.g. NetBSD) can learn about the pkgsrc packages for Tux Paint.
Handheld Devices
- Zaurus Packages
- Owners of Sharp Zaurus PDAs capable of displaying 640x480 graphics can install Tux Paint packages.
- Maemo (Nokia 770/N800/N900) Packages
- Owners of the Nokia 770 and N800 internet tablet, and N900 smartphone can download Tux Paint.
Other Platforms
- BeOS
- BeOS users can download and install Tux Paint and necessary libraries here.
- OS/2
- OS/2 users can download pre-compiled Tux Paint for OS/2 systems.
Mac Apps For Free
Unavailable Versions:
Apple iOS
- iOS 4.3 (iPad)
- iPad users with iOS 4.3 or later can purchase a port called 'Tux Paint HD' from iTunes. Unfortunately, this version is no longer available.
Other Downloads:
- Source-code
- Other Linux and Unix users can download the source-code to compile and install Tux Paint.(Developers can get the latest from the Git source-code repository.)
- Fonts
- Tux Paint users who use languages requiring their own fonts can download pre-packaged TrueType Fonts for Tux Paint.
- Icons
- Alternative icons for Tux Paint.
Did you know? Adults enjoy Tux Paint, too!